That's right. Clint Barton hadn't come solely to help Steve.
He also had a mission.
Nick Fury suspected someone was exploiting the relationship between Bucky and Steve to sow chaos. Fury had specifically mentioned a man named Zemo—a name obviously given to him by Karl.
He suspected Bucky and Zemo were working together, which was why he had asked Clint to keep an eye on this fake Bucky.
Sam nodded in response to Clint's question, though he felt slightly puzzled. For a brief moment, he had noticed suspicion flash through Clint's eyes, but chose not to mention it.
"Where's the other guy?"
Steve asked.
The other person Natasha had been asked to find was Scott Lang.
Although Hank Pym deeply disliked the Avengers, Scott himself didn't share that sentiment and readily agreed to Steve's request.
"He got a little too excited."
Clint shrugged before sliding open the van door.
Inside, a man was sprawled comfortably across the seats, fast asleep and even snoring.
Bang!
Clint slammed his hand against the van door.
The loud noise startled Scott so badly that he shot upright from his seat and smashed his head directly into the roof of the van.
"I think he's awake now."
Clint grinned wickedly while Scott rubbed his reddened forehead.
"What time is it~~?"
Scott asked groggily, before finally noticing Steve and Sam.
"Oh~~ Captain America, hey~~"
Scott greeted them casually. The group already knew each other fairly well after their previous encounter.
"Sorry to drag you into this, Scott. I really need the help."
Steve looked genuinely apologetic. Natasha had already informed him that Hank Pym opposed Scott getting involved, yet Scott came anyway.
"It's fine, Cap. Just point me where you need me~!"
Scott looked incredibly excited.
Back then, he had only met Steve because he'd gotten caught stealing from the Avengers Facility. He never imagined he'd one day become teammates with Captain America himself.
"Scott, think carefully. If you really join us, you'll basically become a fugitive too."
Steve felt guilty. He was the one who had pulled Scott into all this, so he believed Scott deserved one final chance to reconsider.
"No problem, Captain. I'm used to it."
Scott waved it off casually.
He used to be a thief. Going to jail had practically felt like going home. If he hadn't inherited the mantle of Ant-Man, he'd probably still be serving time somewhere right now.
"Alright then. We should get moving."
Steve patted Scott on the shoulder. Since Scott had made up his mind, there was no point delaying any longer.
---
New Avengers Facility.
Tony and Peter hurried into the building, both looking tense.
Without stopping, they headed straight for the command center.
The moment he entered, Tony spotted Natasha and immediately pulled her into a nearby meeting room.
"Natasha, we just got new information. That Bucky Barnes is fake."
Tony didn't even bother grabbing a drink before blurting out what Felicia had told Peter earlier.
"What?!"
Natasha's expression changed instantly.
She quickly scanned the surroundings to ensure nobody was paying attention before lowering her voice.
"You're sure? Where did this come from?"
This was massive news.
Especially since Steve still didn't know.
That fake Bucky was basically a ticking time bomb sitting right beside him.
"Felicia told us. She said Karl personally confirmed it. The real Bucky's already dead. This one's fake. She also mentioned someone named Zemo."
Peter took over the explanation.
He personally had no clue who Bucky or Zemo even were, so he could only repeat the information exactly as he heard it.
"Natasha, something about this whole thing feels wrong. It's like there's a hidden hand manipulating everything from behind the scenes. We're all being controlled by it, and I hate that feeling."
Tony's expression grew increasingly grim.
During the drive back, he had mentally replayed the entire sequence of events. The more he thought about it, the more suspicious everything became.
Natasha's eyes moved between Tony and Peter, trying to detect any sign of deception.
But Tony looked deadly serious, while Peter looked genuinely confused. Neither appeared to be acting.
"Come with me."
Without another word, Natasha turned and walked away.
Though confused, Tony and Peter followed.
After winding through several hallways, the three arrived in front of a room labeled Archives.
"Why are we here?"
Tony asked.
Natasha didn't answer.
Instead, she knocked on the door in a rhythmic pattern, paused briefly, then pushed it open.
Inside were neatly organized rows of files.
All of them shared one characteristic:
They looked brand new.
Though considering the facility itself had only recently been established, that wasn't strange.
"I remember when I first became an agent, managing archives was where they started me too~~"
A deep voice echoed through the room.
Moments later, a Black man with an afro stepped out from the corner.
"Director, we've got new information."
Natasha closed the door and got straight to the point.
"Director? What director?!"
Peter jumped in surprise and hurriedly looked around.
But aside from the man standing before them, nobody else was inside the archive room.
"Nick Fury? How the hell did you sneak in here?"
Tony reacted immediately.
After all, there was only one person Natasha ever called "Director."
"I came here to investigate this situation. Since Natasha brought you here, that means you know about Zemo too?"
The disguised Fury looked toward Tony.
"So you already know too?"
Tony blinked before quickly glancing toward Natasha.
As expected, Natasha remained a spy no matter where she went.
Natasha simply shrugged. She was merely doing what she did best.
"Yeah. And there's another piece of information. Karl says this Bucky is fake too."
Tony pulled over a chair and sat down heavily.
"So that's how it is…"
Fury muttered quietly before taking out a file and handing it to Tony.
"This is everything we've gathered on Zemo. He's a survivor from Sokovia."
Fury only needed to say that much.
Tony instantly understood.
"So he's one of the survivors from that incident… No wonder he's capable of orchestrating something this massive~~"
Tony carefully examined the file.
It contained all currently known information on Zemo:
A Sokovian survivor. Former participant in large-scale protests. Vocal critic of the Avengers' destructive methods.
Only Tony would react this way.
If Karl had been here, he would've scoffed in disdain.
These so-called survivors still had the luxury of organizing protests and condemning the Avengers? Did they ever stop to think about why they were alive in the first place?
Without the Avengers, those "survivors" would already be dead and buried, not peacefully marching around with protest signs.
"So explain this fake Bucky situation."
Fury looked at Tony seriously.
Back then, Karl had only given Fury the name "Zemo." He never mentioned anything about Bucky.
Because Karl didn't want Steve finding out.
After all… Bucky was Steve's beloved brother-in-arms and lifelong best friend~~
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